Though discontinued two years ago, Apple's Power Mac G4 Cube commands a strong — almost fanatical — following. Used Cubes fetch premium prices on eBay, there's a thriving trade in aftermarket upgrades, and dedicated owners are going to extreme lengths to keep their much-loved machines current.

New processor upgrades for the Cube may soon make it one of the fastest G4 Macs on the market, and a computer boutique specializing in high-design technology has just started selling a line of upgraded Cubes to its well-heeled customers.

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"It was derided and abandoned, and yet here are thousands and thousands of users who say this is the greatest thing (Apple) ever did," said Laurie Duncan, who runs the popular CubeOwner website. "It's a thing of beauty. People are holding onto them for dear life."

Duncan, a Brooklyn-based Mac consultant, said the Cube is unique, a utilitarian computer that verges on a piece of art. She noted that one is on display in New York City's Museum of Modern Art.

When it was released in July 2000, the Cube was praised to the rafters for its unique styling, but it didn't sell well.

Starting at $1,800, the 8-inch cube-shaped computer was expensive. It had limited upgrade potential, and the translucent case suffered hairline cracks, which put many buyers off.

Having sold a paltry 150,000 units, Apple put the Cube "on ice" in July 2001.

But since its demise, the Cube has attracted a dedicated following, thanks to its sleek good looks, near-silent operation (it's one of the few computers without a cooling fan), and — if upgraded — pretty good performance.

Kemplar, an online computer boutique that sells sleek sub-notebooks, fancy cell phones and other trendy devices, has just started selling a line of upgraded Cubes.

Equipped with a 1.2-GHz G4 chip, a CD-RW, an Nvidia GeForce 3 video card, 1 GB of RAM and a 120-GB hard drive, the $2,000 machines are selling at a brisk pace.

"The response has been astounding," said Sage Waters, Kemplar.com's director of sales. "People are interested in the Cube because it's the Cube. It's the only computer people are interested in buying because of its design alone. But you have to upgrade it to keep it going."

Cubes still command $800 or more on eBay — a small fortune for a machine of its vintage. And because it is relatively slow by today's standards, most are upgraded, often at considerable expense.

Indeed, a mini industry has sprung up to supply new hard drives, processors and video cards for aging Cubes.

Many owners also upgrade their Cubes with bumper hard drives and speedy video cards. A wide range of video cards from different manufacturers can be made to fit, though shaving the card is sometimes necessary to make it fit in the cramped Cube.

Newer cards also generate a lot of heat, requiring a hefty heat sink and, to the horror of the purist, a cooling fan. One owner built a dinky cooling duct to channel out hot air from a Radeon 9000 Pro video card (see photo).

In Japan, several companies sell special upgrade components for the Cube, including one company that sells special Cube cooling fans. Thanks to its small footprint, the Cube has a strong following in Japan.

Shortly, PowerLogix plans to release a 1.4-GHz G4 processor for the Cube, which will make the Cube faster than the fastest single-processor Power Mac currently available from Apple, which tops out at 1.2 GHz.

In about six weeks, PowerLogix will follow up with a dual 1.6-GHz processor upgrade card, which will make the Cube faster than Apple's current dual 1.4-GHz Power Macs.

Priced at about $1,000, the upgrade will also likely be faster than the forthcoming single-processor G5s, according to PowerLogix President Robert Jagitsch.

Jagitsch said he was impressed by the tenacity of Cube owners.

"It's really amazing," he said. "For a computer model that's three years old, there's still a strong following.

"But for many Cube owners," he added, "it's a case of upgrade it or toss it."

Boris Jotic from Germany, for example, upgraded his Cube with a pair of 1-GHz chips, which ran so hot he had to rig a water cooling system (see photo).

CubeOwner.com's Duncan said she soon plans to sell a larger Cube case to accommodate bigger cards and processors, and to allow more air to circulate inside. Measuring 10 inches by 10 inches, the case (see photo) should be available in about six weeks, she said.

"It's a 3-year-old computer with a significant set of limitations, but people are working around them," Duncan said. "It's pretty impressive. No one is as surprised as me by the fanaticism surrounding this computer. The trouble people go to upgrade it, it's comical. Someone will put a G5 in a Cube. I guarantee it."

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